Pneumatic transit systems

ABSTRACT

A pneumatic transit system for vehicles and material handling means in which the propulsion means is a linear air motor which operates by means of progressive air impulses. The air motor is controlled to provide space monitored accelleration and decelleration for passengers or materials. A structural tube along the travel path provides the two way guide and air duct with pressurized air expanded down through the linear air motor to silent ambient pressure. Each vehicle has a piston in an air tube to act as a cushion or shock absorber to prevent collision with adjacent vehicles.

United States Patent Crowder PNEUMATIC TRANSIT SYSTEMS Wyly KennethCrowder, 3255 Windcroft Drive. Pontiac. Mich. 48054 Filed: May 24, 1971Appl. No.: 146,352

lnventor:

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Mayall 104/ l 34 Priebe 104/18Bertin ..l04/23 FS 51 Mar. 27, 1973 Primary Examiner-Gerald M. ForlenzaAssistant Examiner-Frank E. Werner Attorney-James T. Barr [57] ABSTRACTA pneumatic transit system for vehicles and material handling means inwhich the propulsion means is a linear air motor which operates by meansof progressive air impulses. The air motor is controlled to providespace monitored accelleration and decelleration for passengers ormaterials. A structural tube along the travel path provides the two wayguide and air duct with pressurized air expanded down through the linearair motor to silent ambient pressure. Each vehicle has a piston in anair tube to act as a cushion or shock absorber to prevent collision withadjacent vehicles.

10 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures PATENTEDmzmn 3,722,427

SHEET 5 BF 5 PNEUMATIC TRANSIT SYSTEMS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Thisinvention is primarily concerned with moving people and material in asafe, comfortable, convenient, economical and efficient manner toovercome the difficulties which are present in conventional transitsystems. i

It is obvious that mans survival depends upon his aptitude in dealingwith time and space in the earths environment especially whenconsidering the population growth. It is equally obvious that presentmeans for moving people into and in urban areas are not only inadequatebut harmful to the environment such as the pollution mainly caused byinternal combustion engines. Most urban transit systems are eitherunable to function economically but are impractical both from thestandpoint of moving people but also due to the use of archaic and outof data equipment. This has contributed to the pollution problem as wellas adding to the congestion with private vehicles. Therefore mansecology requires that he use time and space efficiently, economicallyand comfortably in order to survive in this rapidly expanding(population-wise) world.

It is therefore, a primary object of this invention to provide a noveltransit system which accomplishes a high degree of safety, comfort,convenience, economy, flexibility, privacy and non-pollution of theenvironment. This object is obtained by the useof a silent and efficientlinear air motor which drives the vehicle or material carrier atselected speeds in a uniform system which avoids congestion and permitscomputerized control to obviate human error.

Another object of this invention is to provide a transit systemutilizing individual vehicle concepts which enable a high degree ofprivacy and safety while moving people or material in great numbers fromone place to another. It is also contemplated that this invention is notlimited to horizontal travel but may be readily adapted to vertical aswell as diagonal usage.

A further object of this invention is to provide an individuallycontrolled driving means for each vehicle or carrier which obtains spacemonitored accelleration'. and decelleration thus reducing docking andmerging to a smooth and non-conflicting glide. A unique queing anddocking control generates the highest possible density in the loadingand un-loading areas. The linear air motor, as used in this system, isalso independent of;

municipal power supplies since no power failure can affect theoperation. An independent stationary turbine is provided at 2 mileintervals, which are started and operated upon demand from a controlstation. This means that no space is required for heavy buss bars orlarge transformers. The linear air motor eliminates the necessity ofhaving an air commutator from the track tube to each vehicle. Theimportance of this object is apparent when it is realized that acommutator is a high wear device with constant maintenance problems. Thelinear air motor also eliminates the necessity of having individualmotors in each' vehicle that is normally geared to the wheels or anon-slip tractive device to the tracks. In essence, the linear air motoris a gear-type air motor with the internal gear being built in astraight line or rack.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a collisionprevention means to protectboth occupants and materials carried by thevehicles when proximity engagement is likely, such as for merging,docking or possible mal-function of the apparatus. An auxiliarybumperJike buffer means is also provided as an extra safety precaution.

These and further objects will be more fully explained in the followingdescription and the appended drawings, in which:

DRAWINGS tion of the pneumatic drive means.

, FIG. 6 is a graph of the thrust curve of a gear tooth for the linearair motor.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of portions of vehicles, partly in section,illustrating possible contact therebetween.

FIG. 8 is a schematic plan view of the closed loop system.

DESCRIPTION Referring now to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 the boarding station andsome of its components are shown. Generally indicated, the station 10 orloop interchange has the appearance of a subway or railway station whichis accessible to pedestrian passengers, as well as vehicle passengersarriving on the travel loops A, B, C and D. The

boarding areas or loop interchange 10 is designed to accomodate high orlow density transit situations depending upon the local requirementssuch as airports, shopping centers, urban and rural traffic or whenextendable to serve a major municipal area. Note, that it is importantthe loops be closed and relatively independent of each other, except foraccess at the station terminals. Because of this feature, the transitsystem is independent of switching and merging problems, whilepermitting speeds from 8 to 80 miles per hour, for ex ample. It is alsodesigned on the individual vehicle concept, which so obviously is thesolution to present day problems of transportation in congested areas.

As shown in FIG. 3, a passenger for transit has access to a vehiclemeans or car 12 which is formed of .transparent, shock absorbing plasticor similar material, such as polyurethane. A rotating sliding door 14 atthe right front section permits ample room for the passenger to leave orboard. A formed seat 16 in the car 12 In FIG. 1, an arriving passengerP1, whether a pedestrian or one coming from a different loop,A,B,C, orD, proceeds to the center location of area for access to the desiredloop for the particular destination. Assuming passenger Pl has justarrived at the loop interchange 10 and desires a destination served byloop B, after proceeding to the center of the station, passenger P1walks to the boarding area 10B whereat arriving vehicles 12, which hasbeen emptied at the embarking area generally indicated at 10E, permitsselection by passenger P1 of an empty vehicle which he then boards atrelatively slow speed or stopped position. It is contemplated thatcomputer and destination control may be used with this invention,whereby the passenger selects the desired destination, pays' the fare,and receives a punched card which may be inserted in a receptacle eitherat the station or in the vehicle to program the vehicle. A similarsystem is shown and described in the inventors issued U.S. Pat. No.,3,403,634, which was granted in the United States on Oct. 1, 1968.

Similarly, passenger P2 arriving on one of the loops has ready access toeither another loop or a destination within walking distance of thisstation 10. It should be noted that the other loop A, C and D aresimilar to loop B as described and that the number of loops at aparticular stationis a matter of choice, depending upon the particularrequirements thereat.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, there is shown a power means or linearair motor for driving the vehicles 12. An air rotor 22 attached to eachvehicle 12 is pneumatically rotated by means of the air valvingarrangement shown in FIG. 5. The gear rack 24 has a series of flexiblegear teeth 26 arranged on a flexible sheet 28 having a series of airinlets discretely placed beneath the gear teeth 26. The air inlets 30are connected with a source of air pressure of approximately 30 p.s.i.,that is efficiently expanded down to silent ambient temperature pressurethrough the linear air motor Modern plastics have been developed thatare capable of long wear and are flexible enough to air seal the teeth26 against the flexible sheet 28. In operation, as a tooth 32a'rotatesclockwise it "pushesminutelyagainst the sheet 28, as shown on the rightside of FIG. 5, permitting the inlets 30a to pressurize the cavity 34beneath the rotor tooth 32a. The air pressure than exerts a rotationalforce on the rotor tooth 32a to drive the air rotor 22 in a clock-wisedirection. As the rotor tooth 32a rolls forward, it withdraws and allowsthe flexible sheet 28 to close the air inlet 30a. Similarly the otherrotor teeth 32 act in conjunction'with the gear teeth 26 and sheet 28 tomove the vehicles 12 in a linear direction.

As shown in FIG. 4, the linear air motor 20 has a supporting structure36 which provides the guide matrix for the vehicle as well as an air'duct to transmit the air pressure along the sheet 28. The vehicle (notshown) has a pair of rollers 38 which ride along the track support 40under the propulsion power of the air rotor 22 rotating about the shaft42. An air sea] 44 covers the cles 12. Air compression in the ductssupply the power surge demands for the system. Because of the loop beinga closed system, it is desirable to contain the twoway tracks in thesame supporting structure, so as to permit travel in both directions byvehicles.

Referring now to FIG. 6, the thrust curve of a rotor tooth 22illustrates the rapid rise in rotational force to point p and then afaster decline upon expansion of the air and closure of the valving bythe flexible sheet 28.

Referring now to FIG. 7, there is shown vehicles 12 x, 12 y and 12 z asthey could appear due to mal-function or slippage in the system. Themain shock-absorber or cushion tube may be made integrally with thestructure shown in FIG. 4, or separately as desired.

Each vehicle is provided with a piston 52 secured to the vehicle bymeans of a connecting rod 54. For example, vehicle 12x has piston 52 xconnected by rod 54x, etc. In operation, as the vehicle cars aretravelling or when slowing down at a station terminal, speeddifferentials are compensated and bumping between vehicles is preventedby air pressure which is created by: adjacent pistons 52 convergingwithin the tube 56. Leakage, which might be caused by the rods 54, isprevented by means of a longitudinal seal 58 covering the slit in tube56 along which the rod 54 traverses as the vehicles are moving. The seal58 is made of a flexible, high memory plastic material which re-seatsagainst the tube after the rod 54 has moved past any particular point.

As an auxiliary shock-absorber, there is provided on each vehicle 12,flexible bumpers or buffers 60 having therein a small aperture 62. Thebumpers are exposed to atmospheric pressure but in case of contactbetween vehicles, when mal-function of cushion device 50 is evident,then the buffers 60 contract to absorb any shock between adjacentvehicles, while permitting the pressure to reduce gradually thru theapertures 62, upon release the buffer 60 will subsequently return to itsoriginal shape.

Referring now to FIG. 8 there is shown a closed loop system in which thefour-terminal station 10 of FIG. 1 is incorporated. Each of the loops isdesigned to cover a particular area, irrespective of distance, toaccomodate travel requirements from one pedestrian location to another.For example, loop A may connect a parking lot at an airport with theairport terminal. Loop D, on the other hand, may connect a remotelocation with the airport terminal, which may be designated station 10.Similarly, the other loops and. stations can handle traffic for anyparticular needs in a transit situation, depending upon the requirementsof the urban or rural area.

Thus it can be seen that the inventor has provided a simple,economically inexpensive, safe and efficient transit system that avoidsthe problems of present day transportation without adding to thepollution or chaos of our environment.

Therefore, it is contemplated that this invention is not to be limitedexcept within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a pneumatic transit system,

a plurality of vehicles,

tracking means for said vehicles,

linear air motive means for moving said vehicles along said trackingmeans,

pneumatic duct means associated with said tracking means, and pistonmeans connected to each of said vehicles and movable within said ductmeans, whereby collision between vehicles is prevented by said pistonmeans compressing air in said duct means when vehicles are in proximityto each other.

2. In a pneumatic transit system,

a plurality of carrying means,

tracking means for said carrying means,

power means for moving said carrying means along said tracking means,

pneumatic tube means associated with said tracking means, and pistonmeans connected to each of said carrying means and movable within saidtube means, whereby collision between said carrying means is preventedby said piston means compressing air in said tube means when saidcarrying means are in proximity to each other.

3. In a pneumatic transit system as defined in claim 1, wherein flexiblepneumatic buffers are mounted on said vehicles for proximity engagementwith at least one adjacent vehicle to minimize speed differentialstherebetween.

4. In the system of claim Swherein said buffers comprise memory plasticmaterialhaving a relatively small aperture therein to permit atmosphericpressure therein while restricting rapid leakage of air upon compressionthereof.

5. In a pneumatic transit system as defined in claim 2, wherein flexiblepneumatic buffers are mounted on said carrying means for proximityengagement with at least one adjacent carrying means to minimize speeddifferentials therebetween.

6. In the system of claim 5 wherein said buffers comprise memory plasticmaterial having a relatively small aperture therein to permitatmospheric pressure therein while restricting rapid leakage of air uponcompression thereof.

7. In the system of claim 1 wherein said piston means and said ductmeans include queing means associated therewith to guide selected onesof said vehicles to preselected stations.

8. In the system of claim 2 wherein said piston means and said tubemeans includes queing means associated therewith to guide selected onesof said carrying means to pre-selected stations.

9. In a transit system,

a plurality of carrying means,

tracking means for said carrying means,

power means for moving said carrying means along said tracking means,

pneumatic tube means associated with said tracking means, and pistonmeans connected to each of said carrying means and movable within saidtube means, whereby engagement between carrying means is prevented bysaid piston means compressing air in said tube means between adjacentcarrying means in proximity to each other.

10. In the system of claim 9 wherein queing means associated with saidpiston means and said tube means effects guiding of selected ones ofsaid carrying means to pre-selected stations.

1. In a pneumatic transit system, a plurality of vehicles, trackingmeans for said vehicles, linear air motive means for moving saidvehicles along said tracking means, pneumatic duct means associated withsaid tracking means, and piston means connected to each of said vehiclesand movable within said duct means, whereby collision between vehiclesis prevented by said piston means compressing air in said duct meanswhen vehicles are in proximity to each other.
 2. In a pneumatic transitsystem, a plurality of carrying means, tracking means for said carryingmeans, power means for moving said carrying means along said trackingmeans, pneumatic tube means associated with said tracking means, andpiston means connected to each of said carrying means and movable withinsaid tube means, whereby collision between said carrying means isprevented by said piston means compressing air in said tube means whensaid carrying means are in proximity to each other.
 3. In a pneumatictransit system as defined in claim 1, wherein flexible pneumatic buffersare mounted on said vehicles for proximity engagement with at least oneadjacent vehicle to minimize speed differentials therebetween.
 4. In thesystem of claim 3 wherein said buffers comprise memory plastic materialhaving a relatively small aperture therein to permit atmosphericpressure therein while restricting rapid leakage of air upon compressionthereof.
 5. In a pneumatic transit system as defined in claim 2, whereinflexible pneumatic buffers are mounted on said carrying means forproximity engagement with at least one adjacent carrying means tominimize speed differentials therebetween.
 6. In the system of claim 5wherein said buffers comprise memory plastic material having arelatively small aperture therein to permit atmospheric pressure thereinwhile restricting rapid leakage of air upon compression thereof.
 7. Inthe system of claim 1 wherein said piston means and said duct meansinclude queing mEans associated therewith to guide selected ones of saidvehicles to pre-selected stations.
 8. In the system of claim 2 whereinsaid piston means and said tube means includes queing means associatedtherewith to guide selected ones of said carrying means to pre-selectedstations.
 9. In a transit system, a plurality of carrying means,tracking means for said carrying means, power means for moving saidcarrying means along said tracking means, pneumatic tube meansassociated with said tracking means, and piston means connected to eachof said carrying means and movable within said tube means, wherebyengagement between carrying means is prevented by said piston meanscompressing air in said tube means between adjacent carrying means inproximity to each other.
 10. In the system of claim 9 wherein queingmeans associated with said piston means and said tube means effectsguiding of selected ones of said carrying means to pre-selectedstations.